Mike Alexander (musician)


Michael "Mike" Alexander was a Jamaican-British musician who served as the bassist of English thrash metal group Evile. On 5 October 2009, Alexander died while on tour in Luleå, Sweden, due to a pulmonary embolism, a blood clot in the lungs. Evile unveiled a temporary memorial site to Alexander on 25 October 2009.

Biography

Alexander was born in London, England. In 2000, after Matt Drake and Ben Carter formed a Metallica cover band, Alexander saw an advertisement in a local guitar store for a "metal bassist". After calling Drake and rehearsing with the group, the band asked Alexander to join.
In 2004, they formed Evile. They recorded an EP All Hallows Eve in 2004 and a demo Hell Demo in 2006. Soon after, the band signed to Earache Records, and released their Flemming Rasmussen produced debut album, Enter the Grave, in 2007. Their second album, Infected Nations, was released in 2009. Alexander performed with BC Rich bass guitars. He also endorsed Kustom and Hartke amplifiers and cabinets and Dunlop bass strings.

Death

Evile released a statement on 6 October 2009 through the band's label Earache, which paid tribute to Alexander and announced his death. He died in Luleå, Sweden on 5 October 2009, during a European tour in support of their new album, from a pulmonary embolism, a blood clot on the lungs. He was replaced two months later by former Rise to Addiction bassist Joel Graham. On Evile's third album, Five Serpent's Teeth, the song "In Memoriam" pays tribute to the late bassist, using a bass riff Alexander used to play during sound checks. He also was given credit for co-writing "Long Live New Flesh."

Influences

Alexander stated his favourite bassists were Jason Newsted and Sean Yseult.

Discography

Basses